Portable displayer



Feb. 27, R T .R e 21,371

PORTABLE DI SPLAYER Original Filed June 29, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 I M#224110 51 W1 fizz/S Feb. 27, 1940.

A. M. BARRETT PORTABLE DISPLAYER Original Filed June 29, 1938 3Sheets-Sheet 2 JAIQ/ rdunu I 5y M J Feb. 27, 1940. A. M. BARRETTPORTABLE DISPLAYER Original Filed June 29, 1938 3 Shee'ts-Sheet 3 I fif'ifil/S firfihuv" M. Barre?!" Reissued Feb. 27, 1940 PATENT OFFICEPORTABLE DISPLAYER Arthur M. Barrett, Winnetka, Ill., :assignor ,TheBarrett Bindery 00., Chicago, 111., acor poration of .Illinois OriginalNo. 2,159,612, dated May 23, 1939, Serial No. 216,537, June 29, 1938.

Application for reissue November 8, 1939, Serial No. 303,372

11 Claims.

This invention relates to portable displayers of the easel binder type,such as are used by salesmen and others in presenting to prospectivecustomers sales literature, pictures, charts, and other material inconvenient form.

Heretoi'ore, binders that were adapted to be supported in a verticalposition for the purpose of displaying advertising and sales literatureor the like have embodied various kinds of auxiliary supports which havebeen rather unsightly and cumbersome to manipulate, and, moreover,cannot always be relied upon to support the device rigidly and firmly indisplay position. For example, loose leaf binders have been constructedwith a brace or panel secured to the backbone or rigid central sectionof the binder, but Without any partlcularmeans for holding the covers intheir extended or unfolded position for display. Further, such bindersusually require an extra operation when folding up the binder after thecompletion of a sales presentation, and in addition there was alwayssome likelihood that the 7 display supporting portion of the bindermight move outwardly, either partially or wholly, into a displayposition after the binder had been closed. f

The object and general nature of this invention is the provision of aportable displayer in the form of an easel-binder which can be quicklyset up in display position and taken down with equal rapidity withoutrequiring any more manipulation than merely opening or closing thebinder as if it were a book. Another feature of m which the supportingeasel section thereof is substantially coextensive with the cover panelsof the binder and acts as the cover for the binder, therefore providing,first, an exceptionally neat ap pearing unit when closed, second, asturdy support for the sheets .or other material to be displayed, third,a display device which can be removed from display position and foldedor closed in one motion, and fourth, a display binder in 50 which, whenfolded, there is no danger that the inner and outer cover sections willaccidentally become separated.

These and other objects and advantages .of this invention will beapparent to those skilled in 5 the art after a consideration of thefollowing detailed description of the preferred structural embodiment ofthis invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawingsillustratingthe preferred embodiment.

In the drawings: 7

Figure 1 is afront view of a portable display binder shown in its openor display position;

Figure 2 is a back view of the binder shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a section taken generally along the line 3 3'of Figure 1;

Figure 4 Ba perspective view of the binder shown in its closed or foldedposition;

Figure 51s a front view of the binder in its open position, showing theform and arrangement of the booster leaves which raise the sheets duringthe closing 01 the binder;

Figure illustrates the form of sheets preferably "employed in the binderfor display purposes; a

I Figure 7 is an enlarged section taken along the line 1-1 of Figure 5;

Figure 8 is a section similar to Figure 7, showing the action of thebooster leaves in raisingthe sheet onto the curved portions of thearches during the closing of the binder; and

Figure 9 is a small perspective view, of the auxiliary membercooperating with the booster leaves.

Referring now to the drawings, more particularly to Figures 1 to 4, theportable displayer in which the principles of the present invention havebeen embodied is indicated in its entirety by the reference numeral Iand includes inside and outside cover sections 2 and 3. The inside coversection consists of a relatively narrow back portion 5 and a pair ofcover panels 6 and 'l. The cover panels 5 and 1 maybe of any suitableconstruction and are hingedly connected to the edges of the centralportion 5, which carries the sheet receiving or binding means andcooperates therewith to form the backbone of the binder. Preferably,thebinding means is of the loose leaf variety, embodying hinged rings orarches, but it is to be understood that any form of binding means may beused, as desired.

For example, referring to Figures 7 and 8, the center section 5 consistsof a strip of wood, fibre board, or the like, indicated at 50., and theinside cover panels 5 and I consist .of sheets of heavy 60 fibre boardor the like, indicated at 6a and la. The portions So, So, and Id of theinside cover section 2 are enclosed by. any suitable material, such as,fabric or the like, indicated at III, as in theusual construction, thepanel sheets 6a and la 5 another.

being separated from the center sheet 5a by a space, and the fabricbinding at this point forming hinges i2 and I3 by means of which theinside cover panels 6 and I can swing with respect to the central archsupporting portion or backbone of the binder.

The outside cover section 3 isformed similar to and is substantiallycoextensive with the inside cover section 2; in fact, the outer coversection 3 extends outwardly beyond and downwardly below the inside coversection 2, as clearly indicated in Figures 1, 4 and 5. The outside coversection 3 consists of a central portion l5 and cover panels I6 and IT.The central portion l5is made up of a narrow strip of wood, fibre board,or the like,

indicated at 15a, and similarly the outside cover panels l6 and I!include sheets of fibre board or the like, indicated at Ilia and "a,respectively. The outside cover panels and the central panel sectionI50, are covered by a binding of fabric or the like, indicated at H),and the central strip |5a is separated from the panel sheets I61: andIla by a space, forming hinges 2| and 22. The central strip We ofthe-outer cover section is slightly wider and longer than the insidecentral section, whereby both inside and outside cover panels can beswung together into and out of closed and open positions merely bygrasping the outside cover panels. The outside cover panels l6 and H areslightly wider than the inner panels 5 and 1, extending beyond the edgesof the inside cover panels 6 and 1 as indicated at in Flgurel,

and the inside and outside cover sections 2 and 3 are hingedly connectedtogether along their upper edges as indicated at 21in Figure 3.Preferably, this hinge is formed, like the hinges I2, l3 and 2|, 22described above, by the binding of fabric orother material of which thetwo cover sections are constructed.- A pair of flexible tapes 30.areriveted, as at 3| and 32, or otherwise secured at their ends to theopposite cover panels 6, I6 and I, H. As best shown in Figures-1 and 3,the tapes are fastened adjacent the outer side edges of the panels andspaced upwardly from the bottom edges a sufficient distance so that whenthebinder is closed, as in Figure 4, the tapes lie between the panelsand are not exposed. I

Figures l to 3, inclusive, illustrate the display position of thebinder, and Figure 4 illustrates the closed or folded position. To setup the binder for. display, all that it is necessary to do is to openthe binder as if it were a book, bring the inside and outside covers inanextended or planar relation, and then swing the outside cover section3 rearwardly away from the front or inside cover section 2, to theposition shown in Figures 1 to 3. The binder will thenremain in itssubstantially vertical position, resting on the lower edges of theinside and outside cover sections.

Since the two. sections are at an angle. to. one

another (Figure 3) there is no likelihood of the binder accidentallyclosing, since each section holds theother in. extended positionpositively falling or, shifting. its position.

The binder may be moved from its display position (Figure 1 to a closed.position (Figure 4) in one motion and in a few seconds, simply bygrasping the two top outside corners, which closes the inside andoutsidecovers against one another, and then folding the covers over towardoneThe outside cover panels "5 and I1, it will be 'noted, completelyenclose and overlie the inside .cover panels 6 and I so that, for all'practical purposes, the outside cover panels l6 the result that thebinder is capable of being opened and closed in the manner of anordinary book without any possibility that supporting tabs or'the likewill catch on or get in the way of other articles or displays that maybecarried with the binder. The covers I6 and I! may be provided withhandles if desired, in which case the handles preferably will bearranged so that they can be brought together merely by the act ofclosing the binder.

The loose leaf ring binder unit, mentioned above as serving to reenforcethe central portion or back 5 of the inside cover section 2, isindicated in its entirety by the reference numeral and may be of anysuitable construction. Preferably, however, the unit 35 includes twopairs 36 and 31 of rings or arches, each of Whichhas an outer arcuatesection and straight sides or legs. One

leg of the arch of each pair is. connected to the corresponding leg ofthe adjacent arch to thereby form a hinge which is pivotally received bya supporting member 38, which may be in the form of a sheet metal tubeor the like and enclosing is normally provided are indicated at in.Flgures 6, 7 and 8. The sheets are punched to provide-pairs of elongatedslots 41 and 48, and preferably the sheets 45 are punched so that theopenings 41 are spaced further from the inside edge, indicated at a,than the lower openings The'purpose of this arrangement is to pro- 43.vide sheets or pages that do not sag or fall down the weight of eachsheet causes the inner ends of the upper slots 47 to bear against theassociated arches, and similarly the outer ends of the lower slots 48bear against the side portions of the lower arches 31. Thus supported inthis manner, thesheets 45 are held with their inner I and n constitutethe outside of the binder, with "when they are supported generallyvertically in display position. As best indicated in Figure 6,

edges 35a in accurate alignment or registry,

even though the sheets are displayedsubstantially vertically.- This isan important feature in a display binder of the easel type in. thatphotographs, charts, maps, and the like, which may extend over twopages, may be shown, but

the inner margins of the, two sheets are maintained in substantialregistry without any un 'sightly center gap or bulge.

In a binder in which sheets, punched as just described, are used anddisplayed in substantially vertical position, it is quite desirable tohave the associated rings or arches providedwith straight portions, asat 31b and 310 mentioned above, so that the inner margins of the sheetswill be held accurately in close registering relation and,

where desired, the sheets may be printed for a two-page display in whichone half of the display is on one page and the other half is on theother page. However, when this feature is end- 'ployed in a displaybinder having the advantage mentioned above of being capable. ofbeingclosed with one motion and in a few seconds time, it is verydesirable to provide means for lifting the sheets oi! of the straightportions of, the arches the sheets and the edges 53a and 54a of the andonto the arcuate portions thereof, whereby to facilitate theclosing ofthe book and to prevent binding of the sheets on the lower or innerportions of the arches. To this end, therefore, the present inventioncontemplates the provision of a pair of booster fiy leaves indicated inFigures 5, 7 and 3 by the reference numerals 5| and 52. tively heavystock and are quite stiff. Each booster leaf is provided with two tabs,53 and 54. The tab 53 is disposed adjacent one edge of the booster leaf,while the other tab 54 is disposed inwardly. Each tab is punched to forman elongated slot, as indicated at 55. The tabs 53 and 54 and the slotsare formed so that, while the booster leaves are identical, when onebooster leaf, as at 52, is turned end for end and then brought intoposition to receive the lower arch of each pair of arches 36 and 31, thetabs of the reversed booster leaf 52 lie alongside the tabs 53 and 54 ofthe other booster leaf 5|. This arrangement brings the inner marginaledges 53a and 54a of the tabs closely adjacent to the side of theassociated arch opposite the side which is received in the associatedslot 55.

In operation, when the binder is to be closed and the cover sections 2and 3 swing about their hinges i2, I3 and 2|, .22 with respect to thebackbone of the binder, the hinging movement of the cover panels swingsthe booster leaves 5| and 52 from the position shown in Figure 7 throughthe position shown in Figure 8. During this movement the booster leaves5| and 52 fulcrum about the inner edges 53a and 54a of their tabs andlift the sheets 45 up to the arcuate portions 36a and 31a of the arches36 and 31. This lifting action is materially facilitated due to the factthat the fulcrum edges 53a and 54a lie at considerable distance awayfrom the side of the arches that passes through the slots in the tabs,whereby the angular movement of the booster leaves during the closing ofthe binder is sufficient to cause the sheets 45 tobe raised entirelyonto the arcuate portions of the arches, as just mentioned. If thebooster leaves 5| and 52 were not provided and an attempt were made toclose the display binder by grasping the two top outside corners andclosing the inside and outside cover sections together and then swingingthem about their hinges, there might be some likelihood of the sheets 45jamming or binding on the straight portions of the arches, withconsequent likelihood of tearing or defacing the innerxmargins of thesheets.

To facilitate the movement of all of the sheets 45 onto the arcuateportions of the arches, I provide an intermediate lift strip that isindicated in its entirety by the reference numeral in Figure 9. Thestrip 50 consists of a narrow band of stock having fold lines 6| and 62formed therein and slotted, as at 63 and 64, to receive and 6'! of themember 60 are freely movable relative to the center section 68. The liftstrip 60, as best shown in Figures '7 and 8, is placed between the innermargins of the sheets 45 and the booster leaves 5| and 52. When thelatter are swung upwardly, as in closing the binder, it will be seenfrom Figure 8 that the lift strip 60, upon which the booster leaves 5|and 52 act directly, serves to lift or raise all of the sheets 45 ontothe arcuate portions 36a and. 31a. of the arches. Also, the member 60serves to prevent any interference between the inner margins of Thesebooster leaves are formed of relabooster leaf tabs 53 and 54 when thebinder i opened for display, as in Figure 1.

While I have shown and described above the preferred. structure in whichthe principles of the present invention have been embodied, it will beunderstood that my invention is not to be limited to the specificdetails shown and described above, but that, in fact, widely differentmeansmay be employed in the practice of the broader aspects of myinvention.

What I claim, therefore, and desire to secure by LettersPatent is:

1. A portable displayer comprising a central member, sheet binding meanspermanently associated therewith, panels hingedly connected to saidcentral member for folding movement, and a cover unit comprising acentral member and a pair of cover panels hingedly connected to saidcentral cover member, the latter and said cover panels being hingedly.vconnected to said first mentioned central member and panels along theirupper edgeswhereby the cover panels completely enclose the firstmentioned panels when the displayer is closed and serve as a supportingeasel when the displayer is open.

2. An easel binder comprising an interior central member carrying arigid ring support there-- on, binding rings carried by said support, apair of interior panels hingedly connected to said interior centralmember, and a cover section comprising a central rigid section and apair of cover panels at least as large as said interior panels, andmeans hingedly connecting the interior panels and central member alongtheir upper edges to said cover pane-ls and associated central member,said cover section serving to sup-- port said interior panels andassociated parts in generally upright position, said interior panelsbeing supported along their hinge edges by said central interior memberand along their upper edges by said cover section.

3. A portable displayer comprising a pair of inner and outer coversections, each of said sections consisting of a'central relativelynarrow member and a pair of panels hingedly connected therewith forswinging movement relative thereto, means hingedly connecting the upperedges of the panels and central member of the inner section to the upperedges of the panels and central member, respectively, of the outer coversection, said displayer being adapted to be set in upright position onthe lower edges of said cover sections when the latter are swung awayfrom one another, and sheet receiving means carried by the inner coversection.

4. An easel binder comprising a narrow backcarrying leaf-receiving meansand a pair of side panels hingedly connected to said narrow back foropening and closing movements with respect thereto, and an easel sectionhingedly connected to the upper edges of said back and panels andadapted thereby to be swung away from the latter to support the binderin a position for viewing and to be folded toward said back and panels,said easel section including a back and side panels substantiallycoextensive with said first mentioned back and panels and serving ascovers for the latter and means hingedly connecting the side panels ofsaid easel section to the back thereof.

5. A display binder comprising substantially identical inner and outercover sections, each section consisting of a relatively narrow backmemher and a pair of panels hingedly connected to opposite edges of theback member, means hingedly connecting the upper edges of said'sectionstogether, with the back members hinged together and the correspondingpanels of the two sections hinged together whereby when the sections arefolded against one another the binder may be closed and when the outersection is swung away from the other section or inner section, thebinder is supported in display position, and a leaf receiving unit fixedto the inner section and adapted to receive and support leaves fordisplay.

6. A display binder comprising inner and outer cover sections, eachsection consisting of a rela tively narrow back member and a pair ofpanels hingedly connected to opposite edges of the back member, meanshingedly connecting the upper edges of said sections together, and meanssecured to the associated hingedly connected panels of the inner andouter cover sections for limedges of the central section, leaf receivingarches,

each arch having two straight sides and a connecting arcuate part,mounting means operatively securing said arches to the central sectionof the inner cover, and an outer cover hingedly connected to the upperedges of said central section and panels of the inner cover and formedwith an outer central section and outer panels hingedly connectedtogether corresponding to the inner cover, said outer cover serving asan easel to support the binder in display position and the panels of theouter cover being substantially coextensive with the inner panels. sothat the binder may be closed by grasping the panels of the outer coverand folding them toward one another.

8. A display binder comprising inner and outer cover sections eachsection consisting of a pair of panels and a relatively narrow backmember by which said panels are hingedly connected,

means hingedly connecting the upper edges of said sections together,means secured to the as- 'sociated hingedly connected panels of theinner secured to the associated hingedly connectedpanels of the innerand outer cover sections for limiting the swinging movement of the outercover section relative to the inner cover section.

10. A display binder comprising inner and outer cover sections, eachsection consisting of a pair of hingedly connected panels, meanshingedly connecting the upper edges of said sections together, meanssecured to the associated inner and outer cover sections for limitingthe swinging movement of the outer cover section relative to the innercover section, and sheet supporting means carried on and permanentlyassociated with said inner cover section.

11. A display binder comprising inner and outer cover sections, eachsection consisting of a pair of panels and a relatively narrow backmemher by which said panels are associated in hinged relation, sheetholding means permanently associated in register with said back memberof the inner section, means hingedly connecting the upper edges of saidsections together, and means secured to the associated inner and outercover sections for limiting the swinging movement of the outer coversection relatively to the inner cover section.

- ARTHUR. M. BARRETT.

